22 DECEMBER 8-14, 2022 westword.com WESTWORD | MUSIC | CAFE | CULTURE | NIGHT+DAY | LETTERS | CONTENTS | rado culinary history, with pulled lamb, huge bison ribs and venison sausage. At both its original location, which opened in 2015, and a newer outpost in Golden, it also serves more traditional meats such as pork ribs and brisket, which are available by the pound, heaped onto sandwiches or on plates, with sides such as smoked poblano cheddar mac and Southwest potato salad. Ros Siam 2637 West 26th Avenue 303-953-0291 ros-siam.com Ros Siam opened in the Victorian bunga- low that was formerly home to Sassafras in March 2020, just as the pandemic shuttered indoor dining. But the fi rst restaurant for owner Attawut “Wut” Intongkam managed to survive on takeout and delivery business. Now you can enjoy such Thai dishes as pad prik khing (stir-fried chili paste with bell peppers and green beans) and neau nam tok (warm sliced beef with onion and ro- maine) inside as you admire the wood fl oors, stained-glass windows, colorful wallpaper and spacious porch. Safta 3330 Brighton Boulevard 720-408-2444 eatwithsafta.com Safta, which means “grandmother” in He- brew, is a personal project for New Orleans chef/restaurateur Alon Shaya; he opened his fi rst restaurant outside of Louisiana at Denver’s Source Hotel in 2018. Inspired by his grandmother’s recipes and the cuisine of Israel, where he was born, Shaya has given the city a new taste of Mediterranean cuisine, with wood-fi red pita bread, an expansive hummus menu, and a range of other dishes including kebabs, falafel and pomegranate- braised lamb shank. Sam’s No. 3 1500 Curtis Street 303-534-1927 samsno3.com In 1969, Sam’s No. 3 — the fl agship in a then- fi fty-year-old restaurant empire — fi nally closed, but the Armatas family returned the diner to its original downtown block in 2004, along with additional locations in Aurora and Glendale. Alongside the Coney Island favorites that made Sam’s popular in the 1920s, the voluminous, multi-page menu is fueled with diner-style American, Greek and Mexican dishes, including gigantic, green chile-smothered breakfast burritos. Pair one with a Bloody Mary and make no plans other than a long nap. Savory Vietnam 2200 West Alameda Avenue 303-975-2399 Chef An Nguyen honed her skills for years at New Saigon, which her parents owned until 2017. Now Nguyen’s out on her own, proving that she’s a force to be reckoned with. The menu at Savory Vietnam is big, offering dozens of soups, salads, noodle and rice dishes, stir-fries, hot pots and chef’s specials. Order family-style to sample vegetarian dishes and meats done us- ing many cooking techniques; each dish comes from the kitchen vibrant with color, aroma and fl avor, like a tour of a busy street market. Seoul K-BBQ & Hot Pot 2080 South Havana Street, Aurora 303-632-7576 seoulkoreanbbq.com Seoul BBQ is a labyrinth of rooms, all fi lled with grill-inlaid tables beneath boxy exhaust hoods. The kitchen provides standards like bulgogi beef and galbi short ribs, along with more specialized cuts including pork jowl, beef tongue and pork collar with octopus, all arriving with an onslaught of banchan sides. Good as the meat is, you shouldn’t overlook the rest of Seoul’s menu, which spans a number of Korean specialties, from stews to snails to bibimbap and, of course, hot pot. Smok 3330 Brighton Boulevard 720-452-2487 denversmok.com Chef Bill Espiricueta used childhood memo- ries of barbecue in Austin and Kansas City to build a menu of oak-smoked brisket, ribs, housemade sausage and other mouthwater- ing meats at his original outpost at the Source. In 2021, he added a second location in Fort Collins that offers the same down-home fl avors and familiar smokehouse favorites, all fi ltered through a chef’s detail-oriented lens. Somebody People 1165 South Broadway 720-502-5681 somebodypeople.com This brightly hued plant-based eatery feels casual and lighthearted, but the food is seri- ous business, built on real vegetables, nuts and grains rather than relying on fake meats. Somebody People, named for a line in a David Bowie song, opens up a whole new world of light yet satisfying fare, whether you’re vegan, vegetarian or neither. Get a sample during its weekly Sunday Supper, which includes fi ve courses for $38 per person. Split Lip 3560 Chestnut Place splitlipeatplace.com After getting its start during the pandemic as a patio pop-up, Split Lip moved into RiNo’s Number Thirty Eight in September 2021. The team, made up of longtime fi ne-dining pros, serves a menu fi lled with fun takes on comfort food and hyper-regional dishes inspired by the city’s many transplants, like the Mississippi slug burger loaded with “too many pickles,” the Oklahoma fried onion burger and a South- ern favorite, boiled peanuts. Spuntino 2639 West 32nd Avenue 303-433-0949 spuntinodenver.com Chef Cindhura Reddy and her husband, El- liot Strathmann, took over Spuntino in 2014, adding their own touches to the intimate Italian eatery. Today, hand-rolled pastas and braised meats are the stars, while goat from El Regalo Ranch and creamy arancini have become signature items. At the bar, Strathmann has amassed a collection of Italian amari, the bitter after-dinner spirits that give diners one more reason to linger. Star Kitchen 2917 West Mississippi Avenue 303-936-0089 starkitchenseafooddimsum.com Like many of Denver’s best Asian restau- rants, Star Kitchen is tucked into a strip mall and doesn’t look very inviting. But step through the front door and you’ll fi nd yourself in one of the best dim sum joints in town, with fantastic dumplings and buns coming at you fast and furious from the friendly servers wheeling their carts around the dining room. Star Kitchen offers more standard dinner fare into the later hours, too, but the real draw here is the dim sum. Stone Cellar Bistro 7605 Grandview Avenue, Arvada 720-630-7908 stonecellarbistro.com Stone Cellar Bistro opened in a historic building in Olde Town Arvada in the sum- mer of 2022, with a mission to highlight ultra-local ingredients — some from farms just fi fteen minutes from the dining room — in dishes prepared with classic French techniques. Even the beverage program is heavily local, with spirits and beers from the town and region taking a place of pride at the small bar. Street Feud 5410 East Colfax Avenue 303-388-3383 streetfeud.com Chef Merlin Verrier has experience in Mi- chelin-star fi ne dining, but when it came time to open his own concept, he opted to create a funky, vibrant spot that specializes in the world’s street food. Street Feud got its start at Avanti and later moved into Number Thirty Eight; in late 2021, Verrier fi nally found the right space for his own digs, covering the walls in DIY collages and street art. Like a mixtape that you’d play on the collection of vintage boomboxes in the entryway, the menu is loaded with hits, all packed with bold fl avors. Sushi Den 1487 South Pearl Street 303-777-0826 sushiden.net Denver has a longstanding love affair with sushi, thanks in large part to Sushi Den, the pristine house of Japanese seafood that broth- ers Yasu and Toshi Kizaki opened in 1984. As testament to Sushi Den’s status, chefs at just about every other revered sushi restaurant in town have spent time working here. Rather than resting on reputation, though, Sushi Den stays at the top with its commitment to the freshest seafood available. Sushi Sasa 2401 15th Street 303-433-7272 sushisasa.com Wayne Conwell has been slicing fi sh and fi nding new ways to upend Japanese tra- dition at Sushi Sasa since 2005. By syn- thesizing Western technique and current Denver tastes with the traditions of sushi that evolved in isolation long before it hit American shores, the chef has continued to stay relevant in a scene that shifts and changes like an undulating school of tuna. Taste of Thailand 2120 South Broadway 303-762-9112 tasteofthailand.net Taste of Thailand was one of metro Denver’s fi rst Thai restaurants when it opened in En- glewood in 1994, and since its move to South Broadway in 2015, it’s Misfi t Snackbar’s menu changes often. MOLLY MARTIN Eat Here continued from page 20 continued on page 24